Gordon Palmquist

Global law firm Freshfields is advising ESR Group Limited (‘ESR’) on its proposed privatisation from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange by a consortium led by Starwood Capital Group, Sixth Street and SSW Partners (and which also includes QIA, Warburg Pincus, and the founders of ESR) by way of scheme of arrangement.  Additional information is available here. The proposed transaction values ESR at HK$55.2 billion (approximately US$7.1 billion) on an equity value basis, making it the largest privatisation from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange since 2021. Upon the scheme of arrangement becoming effective, the consortium offeror will own 100 per cent of ESR. The proposed privatisation is subject to various conditions, including approval by independent shareholders and regulators. ESR is Asia-Pacific’s leading new economy real asset manager and one of the largest listed real estate investment managers globally. The Freshfields team advising on the transaction was led by partners Edward Freeman and Grace Huang and counsel Danny Li, with support from counsel Cindy Kwong, senior associate Dickson Chan and associate Eric Cheung. Partner Matthew O’Callaghan and associate Lu Feng are advising on regulatory issues, counsel Stephanie Chiu is advising on employment issues, partners Christine Laciak and Aimen Mir are advising on US law matters, and partner Alastair Mordaunt, counsel Laurent Bougard and associate Ziqi Zhou are providing foreign investment and antitrust advice. Partner Daniel Cendan, counsel Matthew Haggans and associate Alice Jeon are advising on compliance matters.

Dec 6

1 min

Global law firm Freshfields has advised Colt Data Centre Services (“Colt DCS”) on a joint venture with ESR to develop the first phase of a 130 MW hyperscale data centre site in Osaka, Japan. The first phase, comprising 65 MW, will be designed and built by the ESR–Colt DCS joint venture and operated by Colt DCS. Colt DCS is global provider of hyperscale, AI and large enterprise data centre solutions while ESR is an Asia-Pacific focused real asset owner and manager. The partnership brings together Colt DCS’ proven operational excellence and over 25 years of development experience in Japan with ESR’s strong in-market development expertise and supply chain partnerships to provide high-quality data centre solutions for customers. Our team advising on the transaction included partners Tomoko Nakajima and Simon Weller, counsel Daniel Boyle, senior associate Junya Suzuki and associate Kevin Fan. Regulatory advice was provided by partner Kaori Yamada, counsel Laurent Bougard and associate Hitoshi Nakajima. Tax advice was provided by partners Peter Clements and Claude Stansbury and senior associate Melissa Pear. IP and data privacy advice was provided by associate Harshavardan Ganesan.

Jan 22

1 min

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (‘Freshfields’) has appointed Noah Carr and Gordon Palmquist as partners. Both will join the firm’s Tokyo office. Noah Carr joins from Latham & Watkins’ Tokyo office and has also worked as a partner at Morrison & Foerster in the city. He advises on complex public and private acquisitions, carve outs, private equity and growth capital investments, joint ventures and strategic alliances, serving a variety of Japanese corporates and investors as well as international financial sponsors. He has over a decade of experience in Japan. Gordon Palmquist joins from Mayer Brown in Tokyo, where he was a partner in the M&A practice after previously working for Shearman & Sterling in the city. He advises Japanese trading houses, corporates, and financial services institutions on outbound M&A, carve-outs and sales of businesses, corporate governance and private equity, real estate, infrastructure and venture capital investments. He speaks fluent Japanese and has lived in Japan for more than 22 years. Noah and Gordon are both US-qualified and registered foreign lawyers ('gaiben') in Japan. Both have broad experience of advising clients on complex cross-border transactions, including those involving the US, where we are continuing to see increased client demand. Noah and Gordon will work closely with our existing Tokyo-based M&A, antitrust and disputes teams and colleagues from across Asia, the US and Europe to service our clients’ evolving needs, with Japan playing an increasingly important role in our clients’ global strategies. “Our partners are pleased to welcome Noah Carr and Gordon Palmquist to Freshfields,” said Thomas Ng, Regional Managing Partner, Asia at Freshfields. “Both are highly regarded by their peers, with strong track records of advising some of Japan’s most recognised companies and leading international investors on a range of business-critical transactions and other matters. Their hires represent the latest step in our growth drive in Japan and their impressive cross-border Japan–US credentials will strengthen our respected Tokyo team and grow our M&A business even further.” “I am delighted that Noah and Gordon have taken the opportunity to join Freshfields,” said Freshfields’ Tokyo Managing Partner Takeshi Nakao. “Their deep experience of the Japan market, together with our fully-integrated team of Japanese and international lawyers – all backed by a world-class, full-service offering and network – will prove a winning combination for our team, our clients and our business. It is an exciting time for our Japan practice, and I look forward to working with our new partners.”

Nov 1

2 min

Global law firm Freshfields is advising Kirin Holdings Company Limited (“Kirin Holdings”) and its subsidiary, Kyowa Hakko Bio Co. Ltd. (“Kyowa Hakko Bio”), on the sale of the international business of manufacturing and selling certain amino acids and Human Milk Oligosaccharide (“HMO”) operated by Kyowa Hakko Bio to Meihua Holdings Group Co Ltd, a China-based company principally engaged in the production and distribution of biological fermented products, including amino acid-related products. Kirin Holdings is a Japanese company with a diverse business portfolio that spans food and beverages, pharmaceuticals, and health science. Kyowa Hakko Bio is a leading company in the research, development, and production of innovative bioactive ingredients. The Freshfields team advising on the transaction was led by partners Takeshi Nakao, Gordon Palmquist and Kaori Yamada in Tokyo with support from senior associates Naoki Matsushita, Chiyokazu Shindo and Emily Seo and associates Seira Shin-Clayton, Takahiro Sato, Yusuke Kanbayashi and Shunsuke Fukuda. US Partners Nabeel Yousef, Stephanie Cripps, Aimen Mir, Nicole Foster and Claude Stansbury, senior advisor Brian Reissaus, counsel Jeremiah Nelson, senior associates Noah Lipkowitz and Andrew Leeds, and associates Andrew Gabel and Casey Hagen are providing US law advice. The Freshfields team also includes Hong Kong Partner Richard Bird, Shanghai Partner Alan Wang, Beijing counsel Ya Ma, Singapore Counsel Cedric Lindenmann, London senior associate Joshua Critchlow and Shanghai associate Tracy Gu.

Nov 26

1 min